"Thank you, Kay. I really enjoyed your energy, ideas and passion for women, music and dance!"
- Aleedra, from Roy, Washington, attendee at Oasis Dance Camp West, 2007

Folkloric Music and Dance: The Gulf and Saudi Arabia have a rich tradition of many varieties of folk song and dance. Women of these countries have their own traditional dances and songs, that they perform in groups to celebrate occasions such as weddings, school graduations and national holidays. Kay has written numerous articles about the folk music and folk dance of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. See Publications for a sample of her work.

For authentic video clips of Gulf women doing their traditional dances, see Kay's Blog.

In addition to writing about these arts, Kay has taught seminars and classes in the Gulf women's folkloric dances (Khaliji or Khaleeji dance) across the U.S. to women at dancer-sponsored events as well as at academic institutions including MIT, Agnes Scott College, Wellesley College and the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. She has been the folkloric dance instructor at Oasis Dance Camp four times and is currently a faculty member of the Arab Dance Seminar.

While Kay doesn't perform these folk dances in public, she has coached and choreographed group dances for professional performers including Boston's Near East Dance Theatre, Libana and the Jawaahir Dance Company of Minneapolis. Kay teaches these dances to share the joyous celebrations of Arabian women's traditional culture with women in the West by letting them experience it firsthand through music and dance.

Recent and upcoming classes:

March 14, 2010 - Khaliji folk dance classes in Rhode Island, sponsored by Kanina. 3:00-5:30 PM. For information contact: kaninadance@gmail.com or visit her website: Kanina Dance

November 5-7, 2010 - Arab Dance Seminar - 2010 - The faculty lineup is Karim Nagi, Nourhan Sharif, Amel Tafsout and Kay. Location: Ripley-Grier Studio, 520 8th Ave., New York City. For more information visit: www.arabdanceseminar.com

Please contact Kay if you are interested in a group class for women in Khaliji dance.